Pan American Silver reported production results for the three months ended September 30, 2010. The company's 6.2 million ounces of silver production in Q3 2010 was slightly lower than the 6.4 million ounces of silver produced in Q3 2009. Silver production decreased primarily due to lower silver grades
and recoveries at the Peruvian operations. Production of gold decreased 24% over the comparable period of 2009 due mainly to reduced grades at
Manantial Espejo. Higher zinc production at La Colorada and San Vicente’s new plant served to compensate for lower production at Huaron due to lower grades, and lower production at both Morococha and Quiruvilca due to lower tonnes milled. Higher lead production at Huaron and La Colorada was due to
higher throughput and higher grades at Morococha but was partially offset by lower production at Quiruvilca due to lower milled tonnes. Copper production declined by 34% compared to Q3 2009 due primarily to lower grades.
Pan American Silver reported that in 2009, the company’s successful exploration programs added 36.8 million contained ounces of proven and probable silver reserves at its operating mines. The new reserves were more than sufficient to replace the 26.6 million contained silver ounces mined during the year. The net result: Pan American increased its proven and probable silver reserves by approximately 5% to 234 million ounces as at December 31, 2009.
The largest reserve increase was at the La Colorada mine, where the company added over 16 million ounces of silver from the discovery of an extension of the NC2 vein, the mine’s main source of sulphide ore. Silver reserves at the Morococha mine, increased by 8% to 38 million ounces at year-end.
Exploration activities at Huaron yielded an increase of 4% or 6.7 million ounces of silver net of the 4.5 million ounces mined during the year. Huaron continues to have the largest proven and probable silver reserve in the company’s portfolio. Last year’s fourth quarter acquisition of Aquiline Resources Inc. with its Navidad project in Argentina, had an enormous positive impact on the company’s resources.
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